(06-28-2019 03:31 PM)Side Show Joe Wrote:  

(06-28-2019 12:51 AM)Attackcoog Wrote:  

(06-27-2019 10:36 PM)Side Show Joe Wrote:  

(06-27-2019 08:52 PM)Kit-Cat Wrote:  

Quote:Aresco also said he doesn’t believe the school’s departure will hurt his league. He said no decisions have been made on whether the AAC will seek to replace UConn, though he said there have been a number of inquiries from other schools.

He also said the league would not prioritize the Northeast if it does decide to bring on a new member, emphasizing the AAC is a national brand.

“We’re moving forward,” he said. “None of our goals have changed one bit from this. We feel very confident because we’re strong and we’ve been strong. We’re focused on the future and this is not going to change anything for us in that regard.”

https://apnews.com/77e2027d1e5b4e6d975d8...ce=Twitter

Replace a Land Grant...….with another Land Grant.

Aresco opened the door for every program from the other G5 conferences to convince the AAC that their program is the best fit. Colorado State has some things going for it, but I doubt they would accept a football only invitation if they are the only western program extended an invitation. They are just too far away to be an all sports member, and I doubt they want to be the program out on an island.

In the end the AAC will narrow their list to large public universities, from large media markets, that are proving they are investing in the athletics at a level similar to the members of the AAC. If BYU and Army say no, than there are only about 5 or 6 programs between the MWC and C-USA that will get a serious look. The rest are only getting lip service.

They arent really any farther away than UTEP is from much of the CUSA membership. Heck, LaTech spent years playing in the WAC as an all sports team. Is CSU's location ideal for an AAC all sports team? No, its probably not---but its workable.

I guess you could invite them as an all sports program. I just don't think they would accept it because they would be on an island. Trust me, that is not fun. BYU is a national brand. They could pull it off. And, Army is close to the AAC's footprint. Just don't see Colorado State being able to do it. Plus, the addition of a program already within the AAC footprint offers greater opportunity for fan friendly road games.

Like I said, I think the AAC would be smart to take their time and evaluate every large public G5 university in large metro areas, that are successful on the field, and committed to growing their athletic budgets. Only the AAC's large public universities have produced winning records over the last 2 season (UCF, Houston, Memphis, South Florida, & Temple). While none of their small private university has been able to produce back to back winning records. I do not think that is a coincidence, and I think the AAC leadership knows exactly what they are looking for in the next AAC member. It may take a year. It may take 5 years. But, I believe the AAC will add another program, and I think that program will be in the mold of a UCF, Houston, Memphis, South Florida, or Temple.

Reasonable distances aren’t a big deal for the AAC. This is a spread out made for tv conference. It was never going to be the stuff of heated proximity based games between long time rivals. Heck—it was originally designed with Boise and SDSU as members (granted, football only members—but still it was planned out as a coast to coast conference).